'01 RS rear clicking

[gpatmac]

I can't describe the noise any better than clicking, except to say that
though it is constant, it does vary in intensity but not tied to driving
over bumps, varying speed, or while making turns.

CV boots are all healthy and have grease in them.

No leakage at diff nor at hubs.

Only 'noise' we were able to reproduce was by moving the wheel back and
forth, but I think that the 'clunk' it made (at the
propshaft-->differential) is normal.

Doing a quick search, it seems as though some have had luck in tightening or
replacing an axle nut, so I'm going to retorque them all.

A couple of things to note; I have some light, 17", Team Dynamics pro race 1
rims that I believe are a lower than stock offset (48 or 45 I think), and my
suspension is stock. I imagine there's a chance that even though the rims
are light, the larger diameter probably places a greater load on the hub
bearings.

So, as far as troubleshooting goes, torquing all of the axle bolts is
straightforward, but how do you identify if the wheel hub bearings are shot?

 

[Michael]

Other cars i have had you would check by grabing the top of the tire when
it's off the ground, see if it moves in or out (towards the car...away from
the car) there shouldn't be any movement.

 

[jb]

So, as far as troubleshooting goes, torquing all of the axle bolts is

straightforward, but how do you identify if the wheel hub bearings are

shot?

If the bearings are shot, your car will not go in a straight line, ever.
You'd be fighting the wheel constantly, every tiny bump will cause you to
move in a slightly different direction.

But yeah, jack it up and wiggle the wheels on the vertical axis. If they
move, at all, the bearings are shot. If they wobble all over the place, you
should be dead by now.

-mark

 

[gpatmac]

Sorry for not updating soon enough.

Turns out it was the bearings in the hub. $411 later I'm back on the road.


Thanks,